nykeiko eats: NYC Restaurant Week 2012-The Mercer Kitchen [Soho]

This post is late because I was on vacation the second week of Restaurant Week. So whaaat!

This past Restaurant Week, we tummy tackled only two new places. 'Park Avenue Summer' is the first one we tried which I somewhat reviewed here (posting pics count as a review right?!) and a last minute decision I don't want to cook tonight before leaving on vacation to go to 'Mercer Kitchen' in Soho. I made the decision 45 minutes before reserving a 6 p.m. table and arrived at the restaurant with zero minutes to spare and almost losing our table. Did you ever have to call a restaurant 15 minutes after your booking time and lie that you were lost and could not find the resto and thus late and adding a few good lines for good measure like standing on Prince and not knowing to go left or right while you're really dashing towards the restaurant? AND turns out the bf had already arrived almost on time and I needed not to do all of that? Well, it may have or may not have worked as the host didn't sound too pleased.

I didn't know what to expect from Mercer Kitchen. I've passed by it more than a gazillion times while shopping in Soho and imagined it filled with fashion industry power lunchers and out-of-towner fashionista staying at the hotel next door. It seemed always busy but that's what happens when you're located in a busy popular intersection which made me unsure if it is ever busy for the good food or convenience.

Overall, the menu selection was small but decent choices for Resto week but since 3 out of 4 of us choose the burger, we didn't get to try the third entree. The normal house menu looks good too and I love the open kitchen concept. I'd go back with an out-of-towner friend that's looking for something good after intense Soho shopping.

Restaurant Week Mercer Kitchen Menu

THE APETIZERS:

Green gooey soup

I'd go back for the steamed shrimps salad

THE MAINS:

The Mercer Burger: Beautiful! But too dry. They didn't even ask us how we would like it cooked.

Grilled free range chicken

DESERT TIME!

Chocolate cake to end the meal

The kitchen

Enjoy!

Photos by me and Naoto Kitamura.

x

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nykeiko eats: NYC Restaurant Week 2012-Park Avenue Summer

This Restaurant Week we tried two new places. 'Park Avenue Summer' is the first one and it was highly recommended by a couple of my colleagues. I was really excited about this one. I'm always excited about restaurants that serve recipes based on seasonal availabilities. You're guaranteed to taste the freshest of the crops. So I learned that 'Park Avenue' not only changes their menu with seasonal transitions but also the entire interior decor.  Subsequently, the name of the restaurant changes too...

  

The food itself was quite interesting. You can taste every flavor of every ingredient on your plate and there was definitively freshness in everything. 

We were 6 people and therefore got to order a lot of things from the menu and we shared a couple of bites from each other's plates. Surprisingly, the free range chicken was tender and flavorful but not so much can be said about the rest of the entrees. The puree that came with my salmon was not fantastic but I still ate all of it. Someone said..it has a little bit of a 'Windex' taste which is definitely NOT a good thing but it was more like wheat grass taste too which is really not a flavor that everyone can appreciate. My favorites were the appetizers since everything tasted delicious. 

The menu

A nice amuse bouche (watermelons) while we looked over the menu

The APPETIZERS

Muscle and Squid Ink pasta. Spicy and salty.

Crispy soft shell crab

A nice beet (yellow and red) salad

The MAINS

Free Range chicken

Organic salmon

The Trout

DESSERTS

Praline parfait with extra crunchie something

The Pana Cotta

Would I recommend this place? Yes but not for Restaurant week although the price is worth it!

Enjoy!

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nykeiko eats: New York Restaurant Week 2012- Jul 16-Aug 10! Prepare your mouthsss..

In Montreal, 'Restaurant week' consist of now 7 participating restaurants..I think that's 2 more since it was first established. It is also the same restaurants each year. It is called 'Happening Gourmand' and I think Montrealers are craving for more.

When I arrived to New York, I wasn't excited to hear about Restaurant week until I saw the LIST. The list of hundreds of participating restaurants and I freaked! It does make picking a lot harder but at least there are more than 7 choices!

Here's the current list of participating restaurants for Restaurant week now through August 10th. Click!

Impressed?? I was and now I'm just like meh..This is what I have to live with :P AND it is held TWICE a year!

I actually only tried a couple of restaurants during restaurant week in previous years (e.g. Fig and Olive and Kittichai) and the problem is, I always want something OFF-menu and that's how my experience of budgeted eating ends. Oh well. At least the purpose of getting our butts through the door worked.

I have of course, compiled a list of restaurants I'd like to try. I'm not familiar with many of the restaurants but I've picked the ones that "sound" good. Does that make sense?

You can help me knock some off the list if you know it's not worth it!
I've starred the ones I've been interested in trying without Resto week.

-Aquavit (Scandinavian)
-Ben and Jack's steakhouse on 5th (Steakhouse)
-Fig & Olive (I tried this last resto week and the truffle mushroom soup is memorable)
-*Hill Country Barbecue Market (Barbecue/Southern)
-Lyon (French, and I always like French and I'd like to visit Lyon one day)
-Marble lane (American New). I've passed by this place and it's fancy fancy.
-Marseille (French. Again, I like French and I'd like to visit Marseille one day).
-Maze by Gordon Ramsay (French). Famous chef right?
-*Mercer kitchen (Soho). This place used to be bangin', maybe it's still worth a visit.
-Michael Jordan's The Steak House N.Y.C. Is this affiliated with the basketball superstar of all-time?
-Morimoto/NY (Japanese). For those who would like to try this place once or second time.
-Nobu (Japanese). I heard this place is overrated and don't really want to try it.
-*Nougatine at Jean Georges! (French).
-*Park Avenue Summer (American New). This one was highly recommended by my coworkers.
-Porter House NY. I like the steak there!
-*Red Rooster Harlem (American New). Marcus Samuelsson's comfort food.
-Ruth's Chris Steak house. I saw this in Taipei before.
-*Spice Market (Asian fusion). Always on tourist's to-eat list.
-Tao (Asian Fusion). This place was mentioned on 'Sex And the city' ..so passé.
-Todd English Food Hall (Continental).
-*Vic and Anthony's Steakhouse (Steakhouse).

Did I miss anything?
Probably.
Any suggestions?


xx

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